Ondo clerics urge Tinubu against coastal highway diversion

By Boye Oyeyemi

Clerics of Ilaje extraction in Ondo State have urged President Bola Tinubu to halt plans to divert the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway away from the state’s coastline, warning that the move could heighten feelings of marginalisation and threaten peace in the area.

The clerics, led by the Founder and General Overseer of God’s Anointed and Blessed Church International, Akure, Pastor Toye Ebijomore, made the appeal on Monday during a meeting at the church headquarters to address concerns over a possible resurgence of youth hostility in Ilaje.

Ebijomore expressed concern over reports that the Minister of Works, David Umahi, was considering a realignment of the highway to avoid the difficult terrain along Ondo State’s coastline. He argued that modern engineering could overcome the challenges posed by the area’s waterways and swamps.

He cited the Bodo-Bonny Island Road and Bridge in Rivers State, as well as major infrastructure projects in the United States and China, as examples of how engineering solutions could be deployed to deliver projects across difficult terrain.

The cleric described the coastline as a major economic asset, noting that Ilaje communities contribute to Nigeria’s fishing industry and oil and gas production. He said retaining the original route would improve connectivity, stimulate economic activities and open up the area for development.

He warned that routing the highway through upland Edo State before reconnecting it to other coastal states could reinforce perceptions that Ondo’s coastal communities were being sidelined in national development projects.

Ebijomore called on Tinubu to direct the Ministry of Works to retain the original coastal alignment linking Lagos and Ogun states with Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states. He also proposed a spur road or T-junction to connect upland Edo without altering the main route.

“We deserve coastal development, not coastal abandonment,” he said, urging the president to ensure that the project reflected his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda by promoting inclusive development and preventing Ilaje communities from being excluded.